Background

The next United Kingdom Language Variation and Change Conference will take place at Newcastle University between 1st and 3rd September 2009 under the auspices of the Centre for Research in Linguistics and Language Sciences (CRiLLS). This will be the seventh in a series of biannual conferences showcasing research in language variation and sociolinguistics attracting participants from the Uk and beyond. Abstracts are invited that focus on these sub-disciplines of linguistics, with no requirement that they should be confined to research on communities within the British Isles.

The theme of the Newcastle meeting is to be: “Language Variation and Change: The Local, the Regional and the Supralocal”. This particular focus has been chosen on account of recent interest in the extent to which the linguistic marketplace and population movements of the 21st century afford new types of speaker choice at all levels of the grammar and across diverse community types. Contributions are encouraged to further explore the nature of these choices and the extent to which they are constrained by linguistic, social and geo-spatial factors. Contributions are also very welcome on other topics falling within the broad sphere of language variation and change.

Abstract Submission

Abstracts (max 500 words) can be submitted via the Linguist List EasyAbs portal at http://linguistlist.org/confcustom/uklvc2009". Presentations at UKLVC7 will be in the form of 15 minute oral papers with 10 minutes for questions, and poster sessions during which dedicated time will be provided for participants to browse the posters and talk to the authors. The deadline for abstract submission is 1st March 2009. Abstracts will be reviewed anonymously by two members of the scientific committee, and authors will be notified of the outcome by 3rd April 2009.

Posters should be of A1 size (1.2m x 0.9m) with a landscape orientation. Further guidelines for posters can be found by clicking here.

Important dates:

Registration:

Postgraduate Bursaries:

Three Postgraduate Bursaries are available for UKLVC7. The following conditions must be met by all applicants:

The applicant must be a full-time postgraduate student (UK or overseas).

The applicant must have had a proposal accepted for presentation at UKLVC7.

The applicant must not be funded for their postgraduate studies (for example by the ESRC or AHRC in the UK).

Bursaries are competitive and are available to partially/fully cover the following costs:

conference fee

conference dinner

university accommodation

Note: Financial support for travel to UKLVC7 is not available.

Deadline:

The deadline for bursary applications is the same as that of abstract submission (1 of March 2009). Applications that arrive after this date will not be considered. You will be informed (via Email) of the outcome of your application by the 3 of April 2009. If offered a bursary you will be required to register prior to the 'Early-bird' deadline: 15 June 2009.